LONG STAY (lifelong?)

[JustCallMeJulia]

Hi can anyone help me.

I found out that one of my biological parents has been in a hospital for mental health reasons for over twenty five years.

I don't know the ins and outs. I am interested in finding out why a person would be kept so long? Are there some things that are not treatable / can't rehabilitate?

There condition is something that others live with and manage in the out side world. Why would they have been kept in?

And, if they've been an inpatient 25+ years... they always will be, right?

*their. Sorry about my spelling.

Some patients get institutionalised, especially if they were first admitted at a young age. It can then be very hard for them to get used to independent living back in the community.

As above.

The person I knew in this situation had become an inpatient a long time ago when it was more usual to be one and care in the community was less usual.

They had schizophrenia and so couldn't function without medication as they had paranoid delusions but on the dose of medication they were on couldn't function because they weren't 'with it' enough.

It's very sad.

I would say it's highly unlikely that they would leave if they've been an inpatient for that long already.

My mum's auntie was admitted in her fifties & stayed there until she died, not dementia, she was there at least 25 years. From what I was told she had some kind of breakdown, had problems with her nerves, I was only young when she died. I would imagine some of the women who are in there long term may have been unmarried mothers because that was what happened to them in the 1950's or women who were promiscuous were sectioned. Thankfully now this doesn't happen, we are in a different age but anyone who was different was removed from society, people who now are diagnosed with Autism, ADHD etc.

Thank you that's very helpful.

This would have been the second half of the 80s I think, when they were permanently admitted. Could have been slightly later.